Romania said seven people were missing after a fire broke out on a vessel flying the San Marino flag on Thursday morning, the latest incident in the Black Sea which has seen an increase in drone attacks both off Romania and Bulgaria’s coasts, on NATO’s Eastern flank.
The vessel, named the Wine Trader, reported a fire at around 7:00 am (0600 CET), inside Romania’s territorial waters, approximately 13 nautical miles southeast of the city of Sulina, the Romanian Naval Authority said in a press release.
“Five of the sailors on board the Wine Trader have been rescued, a further seven people are still missing,” the Naval Authority said in an update.
A search and rescue operation was underway, involving a vessel and a helicopter, it said.
Romanian authorities did not say whether a drone caused the fire, but Euronews Romania quoted sources claiming the ship was hit by two drones.
Romania’s president Nicusor Dan reacted to the latest attack as he arrived for the EU summit in Brussels saying that “we want to gather all the data about what happened exactly, but there will surely be a reaction.”
He said that he had a brief discussion with the Bulgarian prime minister after the latest incident and that together they will meet NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte later on Thursday “to see how we can coordinate better to respond to the increasingly frequent security provocations in the Black Sea.”
Dan also said that Romania and Bulgaria may together propose additional conclusions to the European Council summit, which would include increasing security teams in the Black Sea and setting up a civil protection center.
The VesselFinder tracking website identified the ship as a chemical tanker. The Romanian authorities said it was not carrying any cargo.
The incident comes one day after after Romania said it was probing a possible fresh drone attack on a tanker off its Black Sea coast.
Rescuers on Wednesday rushed to help the Comoros Islands-flagged Yara J after a fire broke out, but the ship’s crew managed to douse the fire themselves.
“Whether it was struck by a drone or not, an investigation is currently underway,” Romanian Defence minister Radu Miruta said.
“This is a matter of significant gravity, given that such incidents are occurring in Romanian territorial waters,” he said.
Suspected Russian drones have hit several ships off Romania and neighbouring Bulgaria in a sudden increase of attacks.
At least 163 civilian and commercial vessels were hit on the Black Sea in the first eight months of this year, according to Turkey’s IMEAK chamber of shipping.
Black Sea strikes
Meanwhile on Wednesday, Bulgaria said Russia was likely behind drone attacks that struck four ships in the Black Sea in the past week, sinking two, but there was no way of proving Moscow’s culpability.
Rescuers are still searching for 11 crew members missing after drone strikes on Tuesday sank two ships in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone and adjacent waters, while five other crew members were rescued.
One of the ships is registered to Guinea-Bissau but the other one, the Chelsea-3, is Ukrainian-owned, registered in Odesa and sails under the flag of Malta, a European Union member.
“There is no logic in Ukraine attacking its own ships and crews, given that the outcome of all these attacks favours Russia and indeed, the logic points in that direction. The problem is that we cannot prove it,” Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev told Parliament.
On Tuesday, Radev summoned the Russian ambassador to Sofia, who said she does not have any information from the Russian defence ministry but she did not rule out the possibility that “these attacks represent a provocation by a third party.”
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo ship Dignity sank on Tuesday after it was hit by a military strike. Four sailors, three Syrian nationals and one Egyptian, were rescued and arrived in the port of Varna, district Gov. Mario Smarkov said.
“All four appeared to be in relatively good condition and had sustained no injuries,” he said. A fifth sailor is expected to arrive later on Wednesday.
Smarkov said the search for the 11 missing crew members continues.
Bulgaria has requested international assistance for the investigation into attacks on commercial vessels, as well as NATO support to strengthen surveillance and control systems and response capabilities against drone attacks.
Black Sea security
The incidents have renewed scrutiny of Europe’s ability to protect shipping and critical infrastructure in the Black Sea, more than a year after the EU launched a strategy to strengthen security in the region.
When the Black Sea Security Strategy was unveiled in May 2025, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned that the region was bearing the spillover effects of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“The Black Sea region is the prime target for hybrid actions. The European Union aims to boost cooperation to combat cyberattacks, disinformation, and other hostile actions,” the EU High Representative said, adding that “recurring airspace violations and attacks on ports and shipping lanes highlight this reality.”
The policy was aimed at ensuring the security of this maritime corridor, as well as protecting critical infrastructure and assets, such as offshore installations and subsea cables.
It also promised the development of a Black Sea Maritime Security Hub aimed at coordinating support and boosting coast-guard cooperation, among other activities.
The hub would also analyse seabed sensor data and alert allies to potential dangers and incoming threats.
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